The present invention is particularly applicable but not necessarily restricted to dispensing systems for dispensing selected combinations of disposable portion control items possessed of special characteristics on the trays of a food service line and particularly, in food service lines of hospitals and institutions. It is important in the feeding of patients of hospitals and institutions who are under special diet restrictions, that they receive only those condiments which are consistent with and permitted by the dietary program prescribed. For example, certain dietary programs of patients in hospitals and other institutions may provide a salt-free or a sugar-free diet in lieu of regular diets, and in which event salt substitutes and sugar substitutes, respectively, are placed on the food tray. The specific combination of condiments will also vary from meal to meal with respect to the number of packets required, such as a double sugar for breakfasts, as well as perhaps additional utensils, such as napkins, drinking tubes or straws, moist cleansing towelette packets, etc., for the patient's convenience.
Dispensing systems of the foregoing type have heretofore been used or proposed for use and include color-coded packet dispenser systems of the type shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,306,437 and 3,351,209, which are owned by the assignee of the present invention. The systems described in the aforementioned United States patents include sleeves or cartons containing a plurality of individual envelopes comprising meal service kits, each containing a plurality of individual items including packets of condiments, as well as eating utensils including plastic knives, forks, spoons, napkins, drinking tubes, etc. Each meal service kit is encapsulated within a sanitary envelope, which preferably is comprised of cellophane to enable visual inspection of its contents.
While dispensing systems of the type disclosed in the two aforementioned United States patent have found widespread acceptance in hospital and institutional use, individual preferences of food handling personnel has at times resulted in the use of bulk-type dispensing arrangements which simply comprise individual large cartons filled with a large number of packets, each of the same characteristics. In the normal use of bulk dispensing systems, the prescribed type and number of packets are placed on a food tray by the food handling personnel and is ultimately checked by the dietician to make certain that the condiments for the correct diet have been dispensed. Unfortunately, all too often, such bulk dispensing systems result in one or more items of the selected combination of packets to be omitted or others to be inadvertently included, which serves not only as a source of irritation to the patient, but is potentially harmful due to variances from the prescribed diet for such patient.
Attempts to combine the low cost and simplicity of bulk dispensing systems with the accuracy and positive dispensing of color-coded meal service kits in accordance with the arrangement illustrated in the two aforementioned United States patents have not been successful in the past. The present invention relates to a compartmentalized coded dispenser system which provides the cost benefits and simplicity of bulk dispensing systems, while at the same time providing an arrangement which assures the accurate dispensing on a patient's tray of a combination of such packets in accordance with a prescribed diet.